Laura Bush foundation grant to Barth is only one in PA

By Mercury Staff

Friday, July 5, 2013

POTTSTOWN — Barth Elementary School has received a $5,000 grant from the Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries, the only school in all of Pennsylvania to receive a grant from the former First Lady’s foundation.

Principal Ryan Oxenford was recently notified of the award.

In 2013, the foundation awarded over $1 million in grants to schools to update and diversify their library book collections.

“This is an incredible opportunity to expand the resources in our library. The grant approval could not have come at a better time with the unveiling of our newly renovated library this fall,” said Oxenford.

“Our librarian Mrs. Fazioli has worked incredibly hard to find additional resources to support our students in moving forward in the 21st century. I am proud that Barth Elementary School is the only school in Pennsylvania to be awarded this grant. This is another step in helping to provide quality educational opportunities for our community’s most precious resource – our young people,” Oxenford said.

The Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries was founded in 2002 as a fund of the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region.

Since its inception, the Laura Bush Foundation has awarded more than 10.5 million dollars to schools in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Marshall Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

In addition to these yearly grants, the foundation has also awarded more than 6.3 million dollars to school libraries in the Gulf Coast region to rebuild their library book collections that were lost or destroyed by hurricane storms.

The mission of the Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries is to support the education of our nation’s children by providing funds to update, extend, and diversify the book and print collections of America’s school libraries. Further information is available at www.laurabushfoundation.org.